His gaze softened and Tark turned his face, placing a kiss in the center of her palm. “My sweet mate, I was ready to die with you if they couldn’t heal you. Life wouldn’t be worth living without you, but now I not only have you back in my arms, but we’re going to have a little one as well.”
Suki pressed a hand to her belly. “What if I’m a bad mother?”
“You won’t be,” Tark assured her. “My mate, you are kind and have a good heart. Any child would be lucky to have you as a mother.”
Suki smiled and leaned forward, pressing her lips to Tark’s. He seemed to always say the right things. If anyone was lucky, it was her. He was almost too perfect, but she wasn’t going to let anyone else have him. For whatever reason, Tark wanted her, and Suki wasn’t stupid enough to let him go. Men like him didn’t come along but once in a lifetime.
“I’ll prepare a bath for you,” he said, “and if you’d like me to join you, then I will.”
“And after that, we can find out what Princess Lucie meant when you discussed going home. If we can’t go through the… whatever it was called, there has to be another way. I haven’t had a home in a long time, and I won’t give up my new one without a fight.”
Tark kissed her. “We’ll find a way.”
He rose and left her sitting on the balcony. Suki closed her eyes, lifting her face toward the rays of the suns. The air smelled fragrant, and there was a slight breeze that ruffled her hair. Callused fingers brushed against her cheek and she opened her eyes. Tark gazed down at her tenderly.
“The bath is ready, my sweet mate.”
She nodded, and he helped her stand. It would have been easier for him to carry her, but Tark merely placed his arm around her waist and allowed her to walk into the bathroom. She didn’t feel like she was at full strength, but each moment she was awake, she felt better than the last. Her sexy cyborg helped her undress before removing his own clothing. He lifted her into his arms then stepped down into the sunken pool of water. The heat of it lapped at her skin as he submerged them and Suki sighed in bliss. As the water closed over her, she felt as if all her worries were melting away.
There was a gasp from the doorway and Suki jerked her head in that direction, her eyes going wide when she saw Lucie, a hand clapped over her mouth and her eyes rounded with horror.
“You’re pregnant!” Lucie screeched. “You can’t be in that hot water!”
“What? Why?” Suki asked.
“Really hot water isn’t good for the baby,” Lucie said.
Her words shot panic through Suki. She struggled to get up, but Tark held her tight. He glowered at the other woman.
“The baby she carries isn’t fully human. What makes you so certain it will be harmed? Zelranians are strong, and so is our child.”
“Maybe we shouldn’t take a chance?” Suki asked. She didn’t want to anger her mate, or make it sound like she was siding against him, but she didn’t want to harm the baby either.
Lucie turned her back to them. “I’ll wait in the other room. I came to see if you would be willing to join my husband, his brother, and two of the Zelthranites for a meeting. One of the other cyborgs is joining them as well.”
Tark stood with Suki in his arms. Air blew across their skin, drying them, and he used his shirt to cover her. After pulling his pants on, they went into the bedroom to speak with Lucie. Suki was curious why they were all meeting, and if it had anything to do with them leaving to go home, but she knew her mate would tell her anything important. Suki tuned out most of what Tark and Lucie discussed as she found a change of clothing, then scurried back into the bathroom to change. When she was finished and had braided her hair, Tark was fully dressed and Lucie was no longer in the room.
“Should I go with you?” Suki asked.
Tark nodded. “If this pertains to your future as well, then yes. I won’t decide anything without your input. However, if I feel your suggestions will put you in danger, then I may overrule you.”
It seemed reasonable enough. Suki took his hand. In the hallway, Lucie was waiting for them. They followed her down the winding staircase and down so many corridors that Suki was lost after the second turn. They stepped into a room with a table that could easily seat forty large males. Both Tourmalane princes were there, as well as two Zelthranites, and Norkov. Tark took a seat next to his brother cyborg and pulled Suki onto his lap. She went willingly and leaned against him.
“I think it’s time we discussed your options, and the other human females,” Prince Drexyl said.
